Scam Alert!

October 23, 2015 by | 23 Comments

Warning Of ScamLast night I received an email from a guy named Tom Clarkson that said, “Have the ingredients changed in your Soap? I have used your brand for quite sometime now and have never had a issue. The bar is kept in a dry spot in the shower, yet seemed to dissolve/fall apart in the hand after just a few uses. Not to pleased. -Tom”

I didn’t have any record of him as a customer so I responded: “Thank you for contacting me. I’d like to help. Can you tell me which soap it was and when you purchased it from me?”

His response: “I’m not to sure when it was purchased as a relative that passed recently bought it for me. It was the clarifying bar. I must say I look forward to trying out the Oakmoss bar as well, many of my colognes have that scent in them! Thanks”

I thought it was a bit odd that the Clarifying Facial soap would dissolve so quickly as it is one of the hardest bars I make, but considering I have recently changed my recipe, I told him I would like to hear his feedback on the Oakmoss soap as well and I sent him a coupon code to cover the cost of one bar of soap plus shipping.

Later this morning I had this feeling that something wasn’t right about this guy, so I posted about my experience in one of the soaping groups on Facebook. Within the hour, I found out someone else had received the exact same email last night from him! I was so glad we figured it out! Someone suggested that I blog about the experience so no one else gets taken by this guy. Apparently he has struck before using a different name and claiming there was blood on the soap he received, also claiming that a dead relative had purchased it for him.

Hope this prevents someone else from getting sucked in by his story!

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  2. another scam i hear about is people will order a bunch of stuff, get it, then claim they never got it and file a claim and get their money back.

    people are jerks.

  4. Saw your post on the soapmaking group. 🙁 Thanks so much for sharing, I would have
    done the same thing that you did! What a scammer! Clearly he hasn’t read Gal. 6:7, his harvest will come…..

  5. Thanks for the update, the fact is that scammers simply have no ethics or concern for others. I think, and others will agree that your products are great as is your skill at making them.

  6. I would have gotten suspicious when he said, he’d been using my brand for some time and then later said a dead relative bought it. I don’t currently sell, but I worry that if I did, I may be rated as having poor customer service for challenging customers. I am learning that being a business owner comes with soooo many challenges.

  7. Aw thanks, Jack! Even if we know our products are great and stand behind them, others who don’t know us may not. It’s very important to protect our reputation!

  11. Scammers are not always strangers sending email. A co-worker bought 15 bars of soap. About a week later she told me the soaps were full of ants. Knowing her history of dishonesty, I responded to her, “Return all the soaps and I will gladly refund your cash.” Two years have passed and I am still waiting for the soaps to be returned. At work she is constantly asking me when I will bring more soap for her to buy. I refuse to sell her my soap. I don’t need her business. Be ware of scammers that purchase your products. Do not refund unless they return the product.

  12. So I recieved a message from someone who was asking me to send soap samples and they were short on money. They said anything will help and then signed God Bless you. I still haven’t sent it. I had a feeling someone is asking not just me but all soapers this. I guess I figured it was a scam to begin with. They probably collect it and sell it. Who knows? That’s like us calling herbal essence and saying I need a bottle of shampoo. Okay mabye not. But you get my picture. Thanks for sharing, Sincerely, Kristie

  13. Hi Amy,

    Thank you so much for sharing and looking out for us. It’s disappointing that people try to take advantage of others’ goodwill.

    Good luck!

  14. I wonder if he was after your recipe/ingredients more than a refund. Sounds as if he could be fishing.

  15. By the way, I’m in England and it’s not the middle of the night here if anyone was wondering why I posted at 4.48am! ????

  16. For some reason, it makes me feel dirty…. It makes me very uneasy deep down when people use their time to get free stuff by making waves, making others question themselves. Why would ANYone do that? Where is their moral compass?

  18. Sorry to hear that you were scammed, it is a shame people try to take advantage of small business owners.

  19. Thanks so much for sharing! I always bend over backwards to make sure that a customer is happy, so I’m glad that you shared this info with us. I’m sorry that you had to deal with a dishonest person, though. It makes me so sad how many scammers there are out there. I regularly get hit up on my Etsy site for freebies and “donations” for suspicious-sounding charities. I’ve chosen to focus my giving to local charities just because it’s so difficult to discern who is being sincere and who is just tugging at the heart strings for free gifts.

  21. Thanks for the info! It helps to be aware of issues like this and as a really small business, I really appreciate the heads up. 😉

  22. HI everyone,
    The same thing happened to me today. I wrote him back because I needed more information on the product he purchased from us, like a tracking number, purchased date or order number. I never heard back from him. Please be aware!!!!!

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